Speakers:

Joe Apa, VP Sales EMEA – Rivada Space Networks

Glenn Katz, CCO – TELESAT

Martijn Blanken, CEO – NEO Space

Kyle Whitehill, CEO – AVANTI COMMUNICATIONS

Alban Gibassier, VP Sales – MARLINK

Peter Hall, VP Europe & Middle East – SES

Despite network operators being hesitant to engage, technology is evolving fast to minimise latency and secure satellite communications. There is also heavy competition across the market with the likes of Starlink entering the scene and disrupting the market for satellite companies that serve telcos.

At Capacity Europe 2025, this panel explored the current ecosystem, how telcos can capitalise on collaboration with satellite operators to deliver quality services to customers and varying approaches to address the need for interoperability between operators using different standards and protocols and maintain security for users. 

How the satellite conversation has changed

As partnerships between terrestrial and satellite networks accelerate, industry executives had a conversation to discuss how hybrid connectivity solutions are changing.

Particularly when a customer has a specific requirement, these types of solutions offer greater potential for satellite companies to support telcos.

The panellists found that, whilst collaboration is increasing, substantial challenges remain in convincing telecommunications operators to fully embrace satellite integration.

“The reality is that telecoms operators are incredibly difficult to deal with because the mobile guys are far too busy building radio networks and the fixed guys are obsessed with deploying fibre,” said Kyle Whitehill, CEO of Avanti Communications. “We are just a very small part that they reluctantly accept they may have to have.”

His example: “I have a good example in Africa where the only way they can deploy network in rural Nigeria is to have 1,000 satellite sites, but it’s taken me seven years to get it done.”

The panel also found that technical approaches to telco integration vary significantly across providers. Glenn Katz, CCO of Telesat, noted: “Lightspeed is an extension of a terrestrial carrier’s Layer 2 Ethernet network in the sky. We’re a carrier’s carrier. We’re the last mile. When we go into meetings with telco, we don’t talk about satellite.”

Peter Hall, VP Europe & Middle East at SES, highlighted just how much the industry has transformed: “If we rewind 10 years ago, the satellite operator industry would have sat here saying, ‘How many megahertz do you want?’ That conversation has totally changed.”

He noted that recent events have driven renewed interest: “Whether that be through natural events and disasters or, more unfortunately, man-made concerns. That’s forcing satellite back onto the agenda.”

Increasing multi-orbit solutions

The market is witnessing increased deployment of multi-orbit solutions, the panel said, which they view as having great potential and a critical opportunity to support countries around the world.

 However, they also acknowledge the limitations of this.  

“We need to make a distinction between industries that rely predominantly on satellite communications like aviation, maritime, oil and gas, mining, where terrestrial networks simply are not available,” said Martijn Blanken, CEO of NEO Space Group. “If terrestrial networks, whether it is fixed or mobile, can serve B2B customers, that will win over satellite because satellites are simply too expensive.”

Alban Gibassier, VP Sales at Marlink, added: “For mobile operators operating in some areas of Europe where there are remote areas, rural areas where the backbone network is not finished enough to cover the site, it’s important.

“With satellite, they can turn on a site just like this in a few days or a few hours if they are very quick.”

Looking ahead, it’s clear that telcos are ready to adopt satellite. For satellite companies, the conversation is shifting to how the industry can better support telcos, meeting them where they are at instead of changing them.

As the panel explored, the future of multi-orbit solutions looks bright, as Katz said: “I believe multi-orbit, particularly for reliability, reliable types of use cases, is for sure a growing sector.”

On emerging technologies, executives also remain cautious about 5G.

“We’ve yet to find the business case to be able to augment our satellite network for the technology and the larger antennas to be able to make money to provide 5G capability to the telcos,” Katz added.